Safety signal switch



Feb. 25, 1964 s. R. MILLER SAFETY SIGNAL SWITCH Filed June 18, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

STEVEN R.MILLER BY D. EMMETT THOMPSON Feb. 25, 1964 s. R. MILLER 3,122,623

SAFETY SIGNAL SWITCH Filed June 18, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 F i 6.5 so H m5 WQQ I I 1 l I I0 IO .2 fg 1 k 62. 63

INVENTOR.

STEVEN R. Nlu. ER BY 0. E MMETT THOMPSON United States Patent 3,122,623 SAFETY SEENAL SWi EH Steven R. Miller, West Monroe, N.Y., assignor to Qrouse- Hinds Company, dyracuse, NFL, a corporation of New York Filed June 18, 1962, fier. No. 293,247 2 Claims. (Cl. 2651-16?) This invention has as a general object a new and improved switch.

It is desirable that such switches be provided with exteriorly located visual indication means whereby the condition of the switch may readily be determined from observation. Further, it is desirable that such switches be arranged so as to operate substantially instantaneously when tripped to minimize any time delay between the observations of a hazardous condition necessitating the disconnection of electrical equipment and the actual operation of the switch.

Accordingly, it is a more particular object of the invention to provide a switch having exteriorly located switch position indicating means, which switch is capable of relatively fast operation when tripped, and further, which may be arranged so as to trip in either of two directions.

The invention consists in the novel features and in the combinations and constructions hereinafter set forth and claimed.

in describing this invention reference is had to the accompanying drawings in which like characters designate corresponding parts in all the views.

In the drawings- FEGURE l is a cross-sectional elevational view of a preferred embodiment of the invention with the switch shown in the tripped-right position.

FIGUR 2 is a top plan view of a side elevation of the device shown in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is an elevational view of a modification of the invention.

FZGURE 4 is a planned view of the detail of the invention, and

FlGURES 5 and 6 are fragmentary cross-sectional elevational views of a portion of the de ice with parts omitted for clarity.

The preferred embodiment of the invention shown in FIGURE 1 comprises a generally cylindrical housing having an interior cavity 12 for 3d therein, which housing terminates at its lower end in a mounting flange l-il through which machine screws 16, or the like, are received to mount the housing on a switch enclosure, or the like. The upper terminus of the housing is formed with an aperture 13 in which the reduced portion 2% of a shaft 22 is received.

The upper end of the shaft 22 is provided with release means, which as shown comprises a ring, or the like, 24,

to which a lanyard, or the like, may be connected (not i shown).

The exterior portion of the shaft 22, above the reduced portion 28, is provided with a shoulder (not shown) and a pair of flat portions 26 and 23 formed on opposite sides of the shaft, which extend upwardly from the shoulder (see FIGURE 2) whereby a signal flag formed with a complemental aperture may be received on the shaft on the fiat portions and shoulder so that the flag 3%) will rotate with the shaft 22 to indicate the position of the switch to observers. The release ring 24 is retained on the upper exterior terminus of the shaft above the flag 3% by means of a snap ring 52.

The inner end of the shaft 22 is formed with a shoulder 33 and a reduced portion which is threaded as at 34 whereby a dished washer 36 may be received thereon. The portion 34- of the shaft 22 is also formed with a pair Patented Feb. 25, 1954 of flat surfaces, and the washer 36 is formed with a complemental aperture 3'7 (see FIGURE 4) whereby the washer 36 will also rotate with the shaft 22. The washer 36 is retained against the shoulder 33 on the threaded portion 3 of the shaft by means of a jam nut 33 and a lock washer 40. Finally, a switch actuating member 42 is afiixed to the lower terminus of the threaded portion 34 of shaft 22.

As shown in FIGURE 1, a switch 44 having a switch actuator 46 is aliixed to the lower or underside of the flange 14 by means of a strap 43 and a pair of screws 5%).

As will be obvious therefore, member 42 will trip the actuator 46 when the shaft 22 moves from the position shown in FEGURE l axially inwardly by means to be next described.

Rotation and axial movement of the shaft 22 is controlled by yieldable means which, in the example shown in the drawings, comprises a coiled compression spring 52 which surrounds the shaft 22 and is ailixed at its upper end by an ear to an aperture formed in the housing i l, and the opposite end of the spring 52 is fixed by the ear 56 to the dished washer 3-6 by the reception of the eat 56 in an aperture 5 formed in the center discoidal portion of the washer 36.

The dished washer 36, as best seen in FIGURE 4, is formed with a pair of radially extending ears of 5d and oil.

Referring to FIGURE 5, the lower portion of the interior wall of the cavity 12 is formed with a pair of axially extending grooves 52., 63 on the opposite sides thereof 180 apart, and the grooves 62, 63 intersect a pair of radially or circumferentially extending grooves 64, es and 66, e7. Grooves 6d, 65 and 66, 67 are axially ofiset, and each extends for an are just short of around the interior wall of the housing cavity 12.

With the dished washer 36 assembled to the threaded portion 3 of the shaft 22 in the position indicated in the solid lines in FIGURE 1, the cars 58 and 6d are received in and guided by the circumferential grooves (16, 67. However, when the dished washer is assembled to the shaft in the reverse position, as indicated by the dotted line in FEGURE l, the cars 58 and 6% will be received in the circumferential grooves 64, 65 for a purpose to be hereinafter described.

With the cars 58 and or in the grooves 66 and 67, as shown in FIGURE 1, the shaft 22 and flag 3i will rotate from the loaded position, indicated by the dotted lines in FIGURE 2, in a clockwise direction to the position shown by the solid lines when the ears are aligned with the groove 65. When, however, the flag 3i? and shaft 22 are rotated counter-clockwise to the loaded position, the ears 5% and 69 are aligned with the axial groove 62, and the winding of the spring 52 serves to urge the ears downward in the axial groove 62 so that the trip member engages the switch actuator 46. With the fiag in the dotted line position, as shown in FIGURE 2, it will be apparent to observers that the switch actuator 45 will not be engaged so that if the release ring 24 is pulled axially by means of a lanyard or the like, should it be desired to trip the switch 44, the torsional loading of the spring 52 will serve to rotate the shaft 22 and the flag 3% to the full line position in FlGURE 2, when the ears 5-3 and es of the dished washer 35 become aligned with the grooves 66 and at, by the axial movement of the shaft 22 under the influence of the pulling of the release member 24.

Due to the fact that the spring 52 is relatively a heavy spring, the pulling or jerking of the lanyard and release member 24- will compress the spring 52 which has been torsionally preloaded by the rotation of the shaft and flag from the tripped or solid line position, shown in FEGURE 2, to the loaded or dashed line position so that the spring will snap the flag and shaft into the solid line position by virtue of the reception of the cars 55 and 6% in the grooves 66 and 67.

Should it be desired to have the flag move from the loaded position to a lefthand or counter-clockwise tripped position, as indicated by the dot-dash lines in FIGURE 2, it is merely necessary to assemble the dished washer 36 to the portion 34 of the shaft 22 in the reverse position, as is indicated by the dotted lines in FZGURE l, and to wind torsion spring 52 in a counter-clockwise direction. in this instance the ears will be received in and guided by the circumferential grooves 64 and 65 when the release means 2 3 and shaft 22 are moved axially outwardly, as will be obvious.

It will be obvious, therefore, that the radial, or circumferential grooves 6 and 65, which intersect the axial grooves 62 and 63, and the radial grooves at; and 67, which also intersect the axial grooves 62 and 63, serve to guide the rotational movement of the shaft 22 by virtue of the reception ears 58 and 6% on the washer 37 in these grooves. Since the grooves 64- and 66 extend from the intersection of the axial groove 62, and the grooves s5 and 57 extend from the intersection with the axial groove 63, each for an arc of just short of 90", it will be obvious that the rotational movement of the shaft and flag 36 are limited by the end walls of the grooves 64 to 67, inclusive. The intersection and layout of the grooves are clearly shown in the fragmentary sectional views of FEGURE 5 and FiGURE 6, wherein it will be seen that the grooves 64- and 65, which receive the ears 58 and 63 of washer 36 in its inverted position, indicated in the dotted lines in FIGURE 1, are in diametrically opposite quadrants as are the grooves es and 57, which receive the cars 52 and 63 with the washer 3% in the position shown in solid lines in PEG- URE 1.

In the modification of the invention shown in FIG- URE 3, it will be seen that this arrangement enables the device to be manufactured in a most economical manner of standard parts, so that if two such switches or switch actuator devices are to be connected to opposite sides of a housing 7t}, having a pair of switches therein, the two switch actuator devices, shown in FIGURES l and 2, and identified in FiGURE 3, by the reference numerals of ?3 and 7 may be arranged with the flags 3% to rotate from the loaded vertical position, for example, to the tripped horizontal position so that both flags will be in the same relative position with respect to the housing 7t in either the loaded or tripped positions. In addition, the reversibility of the dished washer 36 and consequent change in direction of rotation of the flag 3t) enables the device to be mounted in limited space 10- cations, as is the case in underground mines, for example.

What I claim is:

1. A signal switch comprising a housing, a shaft in said housing and terminating exteriorly of said housing, said shaft journalled for rotative and axial movement in said housing, an axial groove found interiorly of said housing, a pair of axially offset circumferential grooves intersecting said axial groove, a dished reversible disk fixedly mounted on said shaft, said disk being forme with an ear received in one of said circumferential grooves, yieldable means having one end attached to said disk, and the opposite end attached to said housing, said yieldable means normally urging said our on said disk and away from said axial groove in said circumferential groove toward the terminus of said circumferential groove in which said ear is received, a switch tripping member mounted on the end of said shaft within said housing, said switch tripping member being adapted to engage and trip the actuator of switch mounted in proximity to said member W -en said shaft moves axially inwardly in said housing, visual switch condition indicating means carried by said exteriorly extending portion of said shaft, said indicating means and shaft being rotatable between first and second positions in a first direction with said dislt assembled to said shaft with said ear received in one of said circumferential grooves, and said indicating means and shaft being rotatable in an opposite direction with said dish assembled to said shaft in an inverted position with said car received in the other of said circumferential grooves, said yieldable means being operable when said shaft is rotated to position said ear in said axial groove to move said shaft axially inwardly in said housin whereby said switch tripping member engages and trips said switch actuator, and release means connected to the exterior terminus of said shaft to move said shaft axially outwardly when said release means is pulled to align said ear with one of said axial grooves whereby said yieldable means partially rotates said shaft and indicating means to indicate that said switch actuator is not engaged.

2. A signal switch comprising a housing, switch tripping means located within said housing, including an oscillating shaft rotatable between tripped and load d positions, said shaft having a portion terminating exteriorly of said housing, switch condition indicating means carried on said exterior portion of said shaft for indicating the on and off condition of a switch adapted to be tripped by said switch tripping means, yieldable means connected between said housing and reversible guide means carried by said shaft, said yieldable means urging said shaft toward a tripped position, said reversible guide means being partially received in one of two control slots for guiding and limiting the rotation of said shaft, said yieldable means urging said shaft axially inwardly upon rotation of said shaft to the loaded position to actuate said switch, said guide means and control slots serving to direct said axial movement, said shaft rotating in a first direction upon axial outward movement of said shaft with said reversible guide means in a first position and said shaft being rotatable in opposite direction upon reversing the position of said guide means on said shaft.

References Qi'ted in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,516,163 Vaughan .iuly 25, i)

PGREIGN PATENTS 282,884 Great Britain Dec. 29, 1927 

1. A SIGNAL SWITCH COMPRISING A HOUSING, A SHAFT IN SAID HOUSING AND TERMINATING EXTERIORLY OF SAID HOUSING, SAID SHAFT JOURNALLED FOR ROTATIVE AND AXIAL MOVEMENT IN SAID HOUSING, AN AXIAL GROOVE FOUND INTERIORLY OF SAID HOUSING, A PAIR OF AXIALLY OFFSET CIRCUMFERENTIAL GROOVES INTERSECTING SAID AXIAL GROOVE, A DISHED REVERSIBLE DISK FIXEDLY MOUNTED ON SAID SHAFT, SAID DISK BEING FORMED WITH AN EAR RECEIVED IN ONE OF SAID CIRCUMFERENTIAL GROOVES, YIELDABLE MEANS HAVING ONE END ATTACHED TO SAID DISK, AND THE OPPOSITE END ATTACHED TO SAID HOUSING, SAID YIELDABLE MEANS NORMALLY URGING SAID EAR ON SAID DISK AND AWAY FROM SAID AXIAL GROOVE IN SAID CIRCUMFERENTIAL GROOVE TOWARD THE TERMINUS OF SAID CIRCUMFERENTIAL GROOVE IN WHICH SAID EAR IS RECEIVED, A SWITCH TRIPPING MEMBER MOUNTED ON THE END OF SAID SHAFT WITHIN SAID HOUSING, SAID SWITCH TRIPPING MEMBER BEING ADAPTED TO ENGAGE AND TRIP THE ACTUATOR OF SWITCH MOUNTED IN PROXIMITY TO SAID MEMBER WHEN SAID SHAFT MOVES AXIALLY INWARDLY IN SAID HOUSING, VISUAL SWITCH CONDITION INDICATING MEANS CARRIED BY SAID EXTERIORLY EXTENDING PORTION OF SAID SHAFT, SAID INDICATING MEANS AND SHAFT BEING ROTATABLE BETWEEN FIRST AND SECOND POSITIONS IN A FIRST DIRECTION WITH SAID DISK ASSEMBLED TO SAID SHAFT WITH SAID EAR RECEIVED IN ONE OF SAID CIRCUMFERENTIAL GROOVES, AND SAID INDICATING MEANS AND SHAFT BEING ROTATABLE IN AN OPPOSITE DIRECTION WITH SAID DISK ASSEMBLED TO SAID SHAFT IN AN INVERTED POSITION WITH SAID EAR RECEIVED IN THE OTHER OF SAID CIRCUMFERENTIAL GROOVES, SAID YIELDABLE MEANS BEING OPERABLE WHEN SAID SHAFT IS ROTATED TO POSITION SAID EAR IN SAID AXIAL GROOVE TO MOVE SAID SHAFT AXIALLY INWARDLY IN SAID HOUSING WHEREBY SAID SWITCH TRIPPING MEMBER ENGAGES AND TRIPS SAID SWITCH ACTUATOR, AND RELEASE MEANS CONNECTED TO THE EXTERIOR TERMINUS OF SAID SHAFT TO MOVE SAID SHAFT AXIALLY OUTWARDLY WHEN SAID RELEASE MEANS IS PULLED TO ALIGN SAID EAR WITH ONE OF SAID AXIAL GROOVES WHEREBY SAID YIELDABLE MEANS PARTIALLY ROTATES SAID SHAFT AND INDICATING MEANS TO INDICATE THAT SAID SWITCH ACTUATOR IS NOT ENGAGED. 